Jury acquits Troy man in July 4 clash with cop

Updated 9:35 pm, Monday, February 10, 2014

Troy

Jurors on Monday sided with a defendant who said he did not punch a city police officer before the cop used a Taser on him during a July 4 confrontation.

Robert Washington said Officer Isaac Bertos unnecessarily used the stun gun when the cop told Washington he could not drink beer in the street. Bertos contended Washington first threw the beer at him and punched him in the chin, leading to use of the Taser and felony assault and other charges against Washington.

A jury in Rensselaer County Court acquitted Washington, 47, of assault, resisting arrest and harassment. He was found guilty of having an open container of beer, a violation that will cost him a $100 fine.

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"This officer Tased him for having an open container on July 4," said Lucas Mihuta, Washington's lawyer. "(Bertos) claims that my client punched him, and obviously the jury didn't buy that that happened."

Mihuta said it's unclear if Washington will seek any civil action against Bertos or the police department. Whether Bertos' Taser use was investigated internally by the police department was not immediately clear.

Following his arrest, Washington was jailed for seven months after failing to post bail.

Washington's acquittal comes as the city and its police force are embattled in a spate of cases involving allegations of police brutality. Furor over such accusations reached a tipping point in the community last month when footage surfaced from a Jan. 25 melee at Kokopellis, a Fourth Street bar, that many claim shows police using excessive force.

Officials have said Bertos was not involved in the Kokopellis brawl, though Bertos was accused of using excessive force in another incident last year. On March 1, Jordan Novak claimed Bertos threw him up against a car so hard that the vehicle was dented. Despite the prosecution's objection, that incident was brought up at Washington's trial. Mihuta argued Bertos had a pattern of abusive behavior and allowing incidents to unnecessarily escalate.

"The main theme of our defense is that this officer has a history of overreacting and let the situation spiral out of control," Mihuta said.

The confrontation between Bertos and Washington occurred around 5 p.m. July 4 while Washington was standing in front of a building in South Troy. Bertos claimed Washington became irate and exploded into an expletive-laced tirade after the officer told Washington he could not drink in the street.

At trial, Mihuta grilled Bertos over why no witnesses supported his claims despite many people having seen the incident. Mihuta also questioned why Bertos originally wrote that Washington threw beer at the sidewalk, not at him. Bertos said he made a mistake in his original report.

Arthur Glass, the acting district attorney for Rensselaer County, said his office was disappointed by the verdict but respected the jury's decision.